Silverspringism

This post was inspired by a another local blogger www.ThayerAvenue.com  who posted about a ginormous McMansion going up in East Silver Spring on Thayer Avenue.                                              

Most of East Silver Spring still has "normal sized" older houses.  The few McMansions or new infill construction that we do have REALLY stand out. 

One example on Easley street is the "McMansion with no windows"  It started out as a small bungalow home built in 1928 between 2 other similar houses.  The home had a larger and deeper than average lot size of 12,180 sq ft. 

It was torn down sometime ago and remained a big watery mud hole with trash and debris in it for a few years.  I once walked by the lot and noticed they were still getting junk and other mail delivered to 701 Easley, it was strewn all over the front of the mud hole. While it was still just a hole, it caused a lot of concern and complaints from the adjoining neighbors and the neighborhood in general. 

I though they'd never build anything there.  Then all of a sudden a huge foundation went up this past year.  The picture does not do it justice - it is ENORMOUS.  Can't wait to see what it will look like when it's finished.  It will certainly stand out amongst the small old bungalows on that street.

Above Post from December 2007 


Fast Forward 2 years from this original post about the house and this house still looked the same - except for the CONDEMENDED notice on the front door from Montgomery County. The notice was posted in June or July of this year,  most likely because of the many complaints from the neighbors.

Photos from August 2009 . . . . .

Photo of the house today

WOW - The house looks a lot better this week - But still has the same condemned sign on the front door from this past summer. 

Finally after almost 5 years it is starting to look like a decent house . . . .

The Building on the corner of Dale Drive and Schulyer Road is getting a face-lift, expansion, a second story and more square footage.  When the building is finished with renovations it will become the new home of the Washington Revels. 


The Washington Revels is a non profit cultural institution, the current headquarters are on Eastern Avenue in Silver Spring.

"An established cultural institution in the greater Washington area for over 25 years, Washington Revels is dedicated to reviving and celebrating cultural traditions -- music, dance, storytelling, drama and ritual -- that have bound communities together over the ages and across the globe."


Annual events include the professionally staged and directed Christmas Revels at Lisner Auditorium (drawing over 10,000 attendees in mid-December), Spring Celebrations, May Revels, Summer Solstice Festival Day, Harvest Barn Dance, and various Community Sings. Venues for these and many other productions range from outdoor parks to a 1500-seat theater







Before

This small 3,059 Sq Ft commercial building is in a mainly residential Neighbohood of East Silver Spring is in the same block as Silver Spring Intermediate - Sligo Creek Elementary School and Errters Market.  The building has had several incarnations. 

If you have lived in Silver Spring for a long time you will probably remember it as the Fairway Pharmacy for many many years.  It's last incarnation was a consignment shop and Vincent Agnes Florist also had a storefront there for a long time.

Go Green and Gorgeous!
Priced at $725,000

This New Eco- Friendly and Energy Efficient Home is located in Downtown Silver Spring in a beautiful, mature established Silver Spring neighborhood with quiet, shady tree lined streets.  An easy walk to the METRO, shops, restaurants, theaters and many wonderful parks.  

Every inch of this beautiful home and yard has been carefully designed, restored and remodeled from top to bottom! The original charm and character of the House and Neighborhood remain. Move in Ready with 3 Bedrooms, 2 1/2 Baths, all New Luxury Kitchen, Dining Room, Breakfast Nook, Living Room with Fireplace, Mud room, Full Finished Basement, Utility Room and Attic.

This home provides a high level of quality, balances environmental impact, energy use, maintenance, comfort and convenience.

WHAT"S NEW? - A redesigned open floor plan including left side addition and roof, dual HVAC system, electrical system, plumbing system, brand new (granite, cherry and stainless steel) kitchen, master bath and all other baths, all porches, windows, exterior doors, patio, driveway and landscaping.

Many Many Photos and more details @  www.8208Cedar.com 

This post was inspired by a another local blogger www.ThayerAvenue.com  who posted about a ginormous McMansion going up in East Silver Spring on Thayer Avenue.                                              

Most of East Silver Spring still has "normal sized" older houses.  The few McMansions or new infill construction that we do have REALLY stand out. 

One example on Easley street is the "McMansion with no windows"  It started out as a small bungalow home built in 1928 between 2 other similar houses.  The home had a larger and deeper than average lot size of 12,180 sq ft. 

It was torn down sometime ago and remained a big watery mud hole with trash and debris in it for a few years.  I once walked by the lot and noticed they were still getting junk and other mail delivered to 701 Easley, it was strewn all over the front of the mud hole. While it was still just a hole, it caused a lot of concern and complaints from the adjoining neighbors and the neighborhood in general. 

I though they'd never build anything there.  Then all of a sudden a huge foundation went up this past year.  The picture does not do it justice - it is ENORMOUS.  Can't wait to see what it will look like when it's finished.  It will certainly stand out amongst the small old bungalows on that street. 

A tasteful newly constructed infill home was completed recently just down the way at 608 Deerfield in East Silver Spring - McNeills Subdivision. The lot was a little over 7,000 square feet and an old garage at the back of the vacant lot was the only thing torn down to build the house.



This house sold for $1,191,064.00 ( one million, one hundred ninety one thousand and sixty four dollars ) and settled less than 3 months ago.  I think this NEW house just "nails it" for a perfect fit with the neighborhood character of East Silver Spring.

Some Gigantic Monster Houses have gone up or are going up in some older Silver Spring neighborhoods, for instance this one on Randolph Road.  There is a Monster Palace on New Hamphire Avenue in Hillandale and a Giant House going up in Woodmoor just past the Woodmoor Shopping Center going North on Colesville that you just can't miss when driving out that way.  Sligo from Silver Spring Singular has posted a few blogs about McMansions in Silver Spring.  I liked this post about Mc Mansions by a local blogger.  Dan Reed (Our future architect/Urban Planner) from Just Up the Pike writes about them all the time and Silver Spring Daily Photo has a lot of photos of McMansions in and around Silver Spring.


So, How do you feel about McMansions in Silver Spring?  What's your opinion?  Want more? Want less? Want Larger? Smaller? or just don't care?

The bungalow, in Silver Spring, MD, is one of the most popular home styles that vintage home buyers will ask me to look for. 

 When I think of, or hear the word Bungalow, the first streets that come to mind are Silver Spring Avenue, Thayer Avenue, Easley Street, Sligo Avenue, Gist, Richmond and all their cross streets.  The subdivisions are Silver Spring, Silver Spring Park and Blair. 

Developed from the early 1900's to early 1930's, this is a Vintage Bungalow Lover's Heaven!  Every imaginable Bungalow type and style is represented and concentrated in this part of Silver Spring.

One  the first homes I ever sold as a newbie real estate agent was a 1928 "Sears" Dutch Colonial Style Bungalow on Richmond Avenue in Silver Spring.  The house was an estate sale, vacant, delapidated and in bad shape due to years of deferred maintenance.  This was the first "Fixer-Upper", I had ever showed or seen in my new career and thought it was a rather scary project to take on.

The people that made an offer on the house were excited because the original set of Sears Plans for the house were available and conveyed with the property.  We all got even more excited when during the Home Inspection, the Inspector opened the rusty old fuse box and found over $3,000 dollars in cash stuffed inside!  The bills were from the 1950's and 60's.  That was when I thought, WOW, Old houses ARE Kinda Surprising, mysterious, charming, cozy and CAN be Really COOL!

A Mature, Established and Vibrant  Neighborhood of Unique and Charming Single Family Homes on Shady Tree Lined Streets. 

Robert H. Mc Neill was a 42 year old attorney living with his wife and 2 Children on the "Mc Neill Farm" - Silver Spring in 1920. In 1925 Robert Mc Neill subdivided his farm into lots that today is Robert H. Mc Neills' Addition to Silver Spring Park.  Most of the 114 Homes in the neighborhood were built in the early to mid 1930's and are prized for their unique character and architectural detail. No two houses are alike, no cookie cutters for Mc Neills Subdivision in Silver Spring! The homes include unique brick and slate cape cods, colonials and Tudor style houses.  Unique to this Neighborhood and to most of Silver Spring, are the distinct alleys with garages behind the houses.

Streets included in McNeills Subdivision are: Dale Drive, Cedar Street, Deerfield Avenue, Queen Annes Drive, Bonifant Street, Dartmouth Avenue and of course, Mc Neill Road.

Over the last year, homes in Mc Neills Addition have sold for an average price of $628,000 and sold within an average of 37 days.

This Recent Listing for $625,000 on Queens Annes Drive in Mc Neills Addition Sold in 2 Days.


This is the Newest Listing in Mc Neills Addition on Mc Neill Road.  








The Neighborhood is Walking Distance to Silver Spring Metro, the new Revitalized Downtown Silver Spring, Town Center, Restaurants, NOAA, Discovery Headquarters, the AFI Theatre, Nolte Park, Bullis Park and Beautiful Sligo Creek Park.

In 2008, Downtown Silver Spring is in for more development  and the groundbreaking of 3 new Multi Million Dollar Development Projects that will benefit this immediate area and will be within walking distanance of the neighborhood
1.)  The stunning new Headquarters for the Maryland National Capitol Park and 
Planning Commission.
2.)  Sarbanes Transit Center at the Silver Spring Metro will transform the Silver Spring Metro Station Transportation Hub with mixed use development.
3.)  The New Civic Center and Veterans Plaza . 
For More Information, Artists renderings and exact locations of the new projects, check out Montgomery County's Park and Panning Website http://www.mcparkandplanning.org/ also check out  http://www.silverspringdowntown.com/

A Mature, Established and Vibrant  Neighborhood of Unique and Charming Single Family Homes on Shady Tree Lined Streets.  Most of the Homes in the neighborhood were built in the 1920's thru the 1930's and are prized for their unique character and architectural detail. No two houses are alike, no mcmansions and no cookie cutters for East Silver Spring!  They include brick and slate cape cods, colonials and Tudor style houses as well as Frame and Stucco Arts and Craft's Bungalows, Sears Homes and old Farmhouses.  Unique to this Neighborhood and to most of Silver Spring, are it's distinct alleys with garages behind the houses.

The Neighborhood is Walking Distance to Silver Spring Metro, the new Revitalized Downtown Silver Spring, Town Center, Restaurants, NOAA, Discovery Headquarters, the AFI Theatre, Nolte Park, Bullis Park and Beautiful Sligo Creek Park.

In 2008, Downtown Silver Spring is in for more development  and the groundbreaking of 3 new Multi Million Dollar Development Projects that will benefit this immediate area and will be within walking distanance of the neighborhood

1.)  "Silver Place" the new Headquarters for the Maryland National Capitol Park and 
Planning Commission.

2.)  Sarbanes Transit Center at the Silver Spring Metro will transform the Silver Spring Metro Station Transportation Hub with mixed use development.

3.)  The New Civic Center and Veterans Plaza . 


For More Information, Artists renderings and exact locations of the new projects,
check out Montgomery County's Park and Panning Website www.MCParkandPlanning.org also check out  www.SilverSpringDowntown.com